Pre-Buddhist India: A Political, Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey of Ancient India Based Mainly on the Jataka Stories c5.t4.93

c5.t4.93

Whenever the wind blew in their teeth, they rode on in front in their carriage with their attendants round them, in order to escape the dust, but when the wind blew from behind them, then they rode in like fashion in the rear of the column. If it was a forest or a shaded or cool tract, the travellers kept on their march all the day long, and at sunset they unyoked their carts and made a laager, tethering the oxen to the wheels. The oxen were made to lie down in the middle with the men round them. The leader of the caravan with the leading men of his band had to guard at night. On the day-break, again, the caravan started on its march.¹¹ If the portion of the route was an empty desert, they had to travel by night. The sand of the desert grew as hot as a bed of charcoal embers at day time, and nobody could walk upon it. So they used to take firewood, water, oil, rice and so forth on their carts, and only travelled by night.¹² At dawn they used to range their carts in a circle to form a laager, with an awning spread overhead, and after an early meal used to sit in the shade all the day along. When the sun went down, they had their evening meal; and so soon as the ground became cool, they used to yoke their carts and move forward. Travelling on this desert was like voyaging over the sea: a desert-pilot (thalaniyāmaka) had to convey them over by knowledge of the stars.¹